Stocked refrigerated bars are commonly provided in each hotel room of a hotel for ready access by the guest occupying the room to individual drink size, bottles of liquor, cans of beer soft drinks, or other comestibles in cans, bottles or other packaging.
Prior to the guest occupying the hotel room, the refrigerated bar has been replenished so that the bar has a full complement of beverages. At the time of check out by the guest, the bar must be checked by one of the hotel employees to determine the guest's acquisitions during his/her stay. To this end, an employee of the hotel attends at the room and counts the remaining bottles in the bar, reporting to the front desk, the number and types of "drinks" missing.
While electronic sensors and related electronic circuitry can be mounted in the bar, for detecting the removal of beverages from the storage magazines of the bar, and for transmitting that information to a central monitoring and processing system, the interconnection of all the electronic components (including wires extending from each magazine holding the beverages to the housing of the bar) would be awkward and difficult to handle. Additionally, in the refrigerated portions of the bar, the operation of the electronic components and circuitry would be affected by the cold and give phantom readings. Where special precautions are taken the structure would become more costly but still not alleviate all the deficiencies of this construction.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide bars including refrigerated bars, and components therefor, all of simple yet reliable construction even in the refrigerated compartments.
It is a further object of this invention to provide bars, including refrigerated bars which are capable of being continuously and reliably monitored at a remote source, for example, the front or reception desk of a hotel.
It is a further object of this invention to provide such a bar comprising improved components which permit ease of removal and replacement of the magazines from the bars.
It is still a further object of this invention to provide individual storage magazines of improved construction which may be reliably monitored as to their contents, yet easily removed from the bar for refilling.
Further and other objects of the invention will be realized by those skilled in the art from the following summary of the invention and detailed description of embodiments thereof.